US lawyer wants to question pope on child sex cases

Attorney William McMurry has filed a motion in Kentucky court seeking testimony from the Pope about what the Vatican knew about the long-running scandal of sexually abusive priests. The motion accused Benedict of being aware of clerical sexual abuse and encouraging secrecy to protect the Church’s reputation before he ever ascended to the Papacy. The claims hearken back to when Ratzinger was the head of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, or CDF, and was responsible for dealing with claims of sexual abuse. McMurry argues that the CDF was complicit in extending protections to abusive priests and ignoring reports of abuse or even participating in cover ups.

Defenders of the Pope cite his decree ordering bishops to report abuse and to remove abusers from contact with youth, but child advocates claim that these are merely a smokescreen masking the way he has actually behaved in office.